Mentor School Board moves forward with levy

The Mentor School Board voted 5-0 Friday to move forward and place two renewal levies on the May 7 special election ballot.

The levies are both set to expire before the end of next year, and would have a large impact on the district if they did not pass, Superintendent Matt Miller said.

If the district does not pass the levy in May, Miller said it will likely need to try again on the November ballot.

"My speculation would be that we would have to because ... we would lose the permanent improvement dollars that would come in calendar 2014. With 14 school buildings and other facilities, we need these funds to maintain and upkeep what we have now," he said.

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The permanent improvement levy that originally passed in 1988 is the first of the two levies up for renewal. It typically generates $1 million per year, Miller said.

The second is the operating levy, which generates $15 million per year, Miller said, noting the two combined make up about 18 percent of the district's budget.

According to the Lake County Auditor's Office, the permanent improvement renewal levy will cost $15.68 annually per $100,000 of property valuation.

The emergency renewal levy for operating costs equates to 8.84 mills and if passed will continue to collect $270.72 per $100,000 of property valuation.

The levies do not equate to new taxes, Miller said.

The district will likely look for new money from taxpayers in 2015-16 because of declining revenue, Miller said, but it is still too soon to know for sure.

The district hasn't sought new money since 2004, he added.

Treasurer Dan Wilson said that budget cuts from the state are largely to blame and the five-year forecast for the district assumes continued loss from the state.

The district has worked to curb expenses where possible, Wilson said.

"Over the past three years our annual rate of increase in expenditures has been less than 1 percent," he said.